You’ve found it. Golf heaven, or as the Naples Chamber of Commerce boasts “Welcome to Paradise.” Yet it might not be just bragging—The National Golf Foundation’s latest statistics show that the Naples-Marco Island area is second only to Myrtle Beach in the TOTAL number of golf holes per capita, and #1 when it comes to the number of private holes per person. What that translates into for those of you looking for a Great Golf Community is that while many wonderful golf communities still offer daily-fee, semi-private conditions, nowhere else can you find more options for that extra layer of exclusivity in your golf community lifestyle than Naples.

And there’s more to Naples than just quiet, very secluded golf. Naples is still out-of-the-way enough to still have that small-town charm, where your neighbors still go for a morning stroll or jog and wave as they pass by. Each corner of this town of less than 30,000 in Naples-proper has its own style and areas like Bayfront offer the classy restaurants, exclusive boutiques and nightlife of a classic city like its namesake in Italy.

Yet Naples is even more than simple sophistication. In the spring of 2005, the city was named the best “Small Art Town” in a book of the 100 Best Art Towns in America. Author John Villani called Naples “an arts powerhouse overdue for national attention.” The book rates Naples ahead of Taos, Aspen, Provincetown and Ashland, Oregon, all renowned for the quality of their local support for galleries, festivals, theaters and museums. Villani was talking about the area’s arts community when he extolled the virtues of Naples’ “amazing range of natural splendor”, but he could well have been visiting one of the area’s growing number of fabulous golf communities. If you consider golf an art form, you may have found a new home.